Coupler pin protector



Patentecl Jan. 20, 1953 UNITED STAT-ES PATENT OFFICE COUPLERPIN PROTECTOB Frank H. Kayler, Alliance, Ohio, assignor to American SteeliFoundries, Chicago, Ill.,:a .corporation=of New Jersey Apll'lieation August 6, 1949,Serial N0. 108;877

7 laims. 1

This invention relates to railway coupl ers -ancl more particula-rly to the type in Which a knuckle is rotatably connected a coupler head "oy a pin and wherein meang are provided. '00 protect the pin against wear and to relieve the pin from d1aft and bufling stresses when the coupler is in service.

In present couplers these means comprise bosses on the coupler heaa surrounding the 'pin and shoulders 011 the knuckle extending partially around the bosses f0r abutment therewith. The mating surfaces on the bosses and thie shoulders are not machined and are afforded c1earance therebetween as establis'hed by manufacturing tolerances to insure that Ehe parts Will fit. In order to permit movement cf the 'knuckle to engage the shoulders thereon with the bosses Without subjecting the pin to great shearing stresses, the pin holes in the bosses and knuckle are made 1a1ger than the pin. The construction thus 'far described is Wel1 known in the art anal provides, in effect, a fioating pin arrangement, the pin serving as a, piv.ot for the knuckle when it is being opene d and to retain the knuckle aga'inst displacement.

Due 110 the conditions under which A. A. R. Standard couplers operate in service, it is highly desirable that the operations cf unlocking coupler and opengng knuckle by means of the conventional oberating rod. be made as easy as possible 130 counteract the temptation for an operator 120 step between the cars to open the knuck1e directly by band, Which it Will be understood is a dangerous practice.

It is, therefore, desirable 170 reduce frictional resistance to free operation o;f the knuckle 130 a minimum Whi1e still retaining all desirable features of operation anal service wear resistance of thi5 design.

I have discovered one cause of considerable frictional resistance to free knuckle opening 110 be due to contaci; and wedging action between portions of pin protector surfaces 011 the knuckle and the coupler body, and that this can be eliminaoed by a change in construction, explained as follows:

The large pin holes in body of this type coupler permit movement of the pin and the knu'ckle into such a position by Ehe operating mechanism during knuckle throwing or opening operation that the mating surfaceg of the bosses and shoulders are positioned eccentrically ancl that 0ertain of these surfaces are caused 110 engage tangentially, thereby producing a wedging action between the shoulders and the bosses and frieopen the knuckle, t-his arrangement ne cessitates shifting of the knuekle laterally of the coupler and overcom ing the frictional resistance between the normally unfinished surfaces on the knuckle and the boss supporting the knuckle.

A general object of the invention is to provide a simple means efficiently operating to re'lieve the pivot pin from pu1ling and buffing stresses and accommodating free opemfng be knucjkle by the operating mechanism irrespctive of th e position of1t he knuckle.

A more specific object 15 to modify the 00m struction of tl 1e bosses in such manner that'b'inding 01' w e.dain acti0n with the lSh-0Llldflffi durin opening o'f the knuckle is preVen'ted.

A further object is to .provide an arrang.ement wherein surface contact areas'between thebosses and the shoulders remain the same as in present arrangements and Wherein .certain .sur-face D01.- tions cf the bosses around which the shoulders pass when the knuckle .is rotated to open posi.-.- tion a re of novel configuration to .afford clearance for the shoulders When ehe knuckle is r-otated to open position.

The invention particularly contemgilates an arrangement c0 be used With pr esen t knuekles.

Another object -is :provide an inexpensive arrangement whieh will overeome the difiiculties mentioned -and have 1ong 1ife in service.

These and other ob jeots will Joeeo me more ap- =parent from the specification and -the draw-ings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a fragmentarysideelevationa view of a coupler incorporating the -invention the v;i ew beingtaken from ohe knuckle sideof the-couler;

Figu-re 2 a fragmentary -sectiona1 wiew tanken substan-tial-ly on the li-ne 2-2 of .Figure 1, angi showing the 'kn11Ck1e-c10sed'in top plan and -the knuckle thrower in phantom lines; and

Figures 3 '00 5 are fragmentary enlarged =views of the.structure shown in'Figure '2, Figure 3 :show-v ing the position of the parts with the =knnckle closed, Figure 4 showing fihe position -of the knuckle moved by the operating mechanism prior t0 rotation, and Figure 5 showing the knuo'k le rotated to open pos'ition.

Referring 'to the draw'ings in detail, 1fihe coup1er comprisesa'head 2 with spaced top and bottom 1ugs or ears 4, 4 prov'ided With =bosses 6, 6 on their adjacent sides. A knuckle 12 is pivoted to the head by a. pin-or holt I4 extending through vertically aligned openings =I6, I6 in the bosses and ears and opening I8 in 'the body portit n 221 of the :knuckle fitted between bosses I6, 1i 'gmd slidably sup1aorted as at 22 on the bottom boss 6. The coupler head is preferably formed as a cast ing and the openings I6 are made larger than the pin, the openings I6 being preferably ovalshaped and elongated longitudinally of the coupler. The opening I8 for purpose of illustration is shown the same diameter as the pin.

Bach boss 6 is generally round in cross section and formed at the juncture of its outboard and inner sides rearwardly of the pin with a stop member 24 formed integral with the associated lug 4 and a side wall 26 (Figure 1) of the head, said stop member presenting a generally vertical abutment face 23 extending longitudinally of the coupler and disposed rearwardly of the associa.ted boss 6. Each stop member also presents a. generally vertical abutment face 30 disposed outboardly of the associated boss and extending transversely of the coupler and facing forwardly thereof.

Each boss 6 is provided with generally vertical substantially cylindrical convex draft end bufi abutment surfaces 32 and 34 alignecl longitudinally of the coupler and disposed, respectively, rearwardly and forwardly of the pin on the inner and outer sides of the boss. The inner surface extends between face 28 011 stop member 24 and a substantially vertical fiat surface 36 on the inboard side of the boss, said surface 36 extending between surfaces 32 and 34.

Each boss is partially loosely surrounded by a U-shaped shoulder, generally indicated 38, and formed integral with the body portion of the knuckle, said shoulder comprising inner and outer legs 40- and 42 joined by an intermediate portion 44 at the inboard side 015 the associated boss. II: will be understood that a shoulder 38 is formed on the top and on the bottom of the body portion of the knuckle as seen in Figure 1.

The legs 40 and 42 are provided on their internal sides with generally vertical concave draft and bufling surfaces 46 and 48 complementary to surfaces 32 and 34, respectively, for abutment therewith when the knuckle is closed and shifted longitudinally of the coupler under draft and bufiing forces in service as accommodated by the enlarged oval-shaped Openings I6, I6. The inner side of the intermediate portion 44 of each shoulder is provided with a substantially flat vertical surface 50 extending between surfaces 46 and 48. II; will be noted that by flattening surfaces 36 and 50, substantial thickness is aiforded through portion 44 of each shoulder as seen in Figure 2.

Considering now Figures 2 anal 3, it will be noted that the knuckle is in closed position preparatory to its opening by the knuckle thrower 01 opener 52 of a conventional operating mechanism well known in the art, the thrower 52 engaging a bearing pad 54 on the knuckle rearwardly cf the pin I4. In this position of the knuckle, the legs 40 end 42 of the shoulders are disposed rearwardly and forwardly, respectively, of the related bosses ancl the surfaces 32, 34, 46 and 48 are aligned longitudinally of the coupler. The free end of leg 40 of each shoulder presents a. generally vertical face 56 adjacent face 28 on stop lug 24 adaptied for abutment therewith to limit counterclockwise rotation of the knuckle. The free end of leg 42 of each shoulder terminates in a flat, generally vertical face 58 spaced from face 30 on the stop 24 and adapted for abutment therewith to limit clockwise rotation of the knuckle to open position as shown in Figure 5.

It will be understood that during opening of the knuckle the legs 42 will pass around the outboard sides of the bosses end that in the closed position of the knuckle the free ends of lege 42 are spa.ced from stops 30 on member 26.

In opening the knuckle, the thrower 52 initially shifts or moves the knuckle transversely of the coupler to the right as shown in Figure 4, until the pin engages the inboard side of each pin hole I6 as at 60 (Figures 4 and 5) and until the knuckle engages the pin if the pin hole I8 in the knuckle is larger than the pin. As readily seen in Figure 4, the surfaces 46 end 48 are shifted to a. position eccentric with respect to surfaces 32 and 34 on the bosses, and each surface 48 engages the associatecl surface 34 at a point 62 adjacent face 58 on the associated leg 42, said point 62 being disposed in a vertical plane extending longitudinally of the coupler outboardly of the axis 64 of the pin in the closed position of the knuckle and the path of movement of point 62 is along the am indicated at 66 when the knuckle is rotated to open position. In Order to accommodate unrestricted rotation of the knuckle, point 62 is prevented from engaging the outboard side of the boss by forming the outboard side 0f each boss with a depression or recess 68 defined by a surface 10 disposed inwardly of arc 66, or in other words the radius of surface I0 is less than the radius from axis 64 to arc 66. Each surface III extends at one end to face 30 on member 24 and at the other end fiares outwardly anal merges with surface 34 adjacent the forward or outer side of the boss.

The novel arrangement has been found in actual practice to accommodate free rotation of the knuckle to open position by the operating mechanism. Wedging action between the knuckle shoulders and the bosses and consequent lateral shifting of the knuckle during rotation to open position is entirely eliminated as a consequence of Which substantially less force is required to actuate the operating mechanism and open the knuckle. The novel configuration 0f the bosses, while improving the operation of the knuckle affords maximum bearing area for the shoulders of the knuckle and requires no change in the knuckles presently in use.

I claim:

1. In a coupler, a, coupler head comprising spaced top and bottom ears with bosses on their adajcent sides, a knuckle extending between said bosses and loosely rotatably connected theretg on an axis accommoclating shifting of the knuckle laterally and longitudinally of seid coupler, U- shapecl shoulders on the top and bottom of seid knuckle loosely partially surrounding respective bosses, each shoulder comprising inne1' and outer legs and an intermecliate portion interconnecting the legs, said inner and outer lege anal said portion beim; disposed along the inner and outer anal inboard sides, respectively, of the associatezd boss in the closed position of seid knuckle, each boss being provided with convex surfaces on its inner anal oute1 sides end a subtsantially fiat surface 011 its inboard sides extending between end merging with the adjacent convex surfaces, each shoulder being provided With concave surfaces on its inner anal outer legs adapted to be po5itioned. in concentric relationship with the convex surfaces on said bosses when said knuckle is in closed position each portion having a substantially flat surface adapted to lie along the fiat surface on the relateol boss in the closed position of said knuckle, said bosses having their outboard sides offset and spaced inboardly of the path of movement of said surfaces on said outer legs during rota.tion of said knuckle when said knuckle is shifted a maximum amount laterally cf said coupler in a direction inboardly cf said bosses.

2. In a coupler, a coupler head comprising ver-= tically spaced tap and bottom 1ugs with bosses 011 adjacent sirles thereef, a knuck1e extending b.- tween said bosses and pivotally connected thereto n a, shiftable axig accommodating rotatio-nal, lateral and longitudinal movement of said knuckle with respect to said heacl, said knuckle comprising U-shaped shoulders 011 the top and bottom thereof loosely, partially surrounding respectiva bosses, each shoulder comprising inner and outer 1egs and an intermediate portion interconnecting the legs, said inner and outer legs and portion being disposed in the closed position of said knuckle along the immer, outer and inboard sides of the associated boss, respecoively, said 1egs and inner and outer sides of said bosses being provided Wih mating surfaces disposed in concentric relationship in the c1osed position of the knuckle, means for operating said knuckle comprising a throvver adapted. 1:0 initially shift said knuckle in a direction inboardly 0f said bosses and then rotate said knuck1e 110 open position an an axis spaced inboardly With respect to that 0f said surfaces an the bosses, said bosses having their outboard sides offset and. spacecl inboardly of the path of movement cf said surfaces 011 saicl outer legs of said shoulders during rotation of said knuekle on said last-mentioned axis.

3. A car coupler described in its normal closed position, compri5ing a coupler head having spaced ears and a knuck1e therebetween, a pin extenoling through aligned openings in said ears and knuekle, cooperating draft and buffing faces 011 said knuckle and ears disposed forwardly an rearwardly of said pin, respectively, said knuckle faces fitting 100se1y around the faces on said ears and said openings being karger than the diameter of the pin to accommodate movement of said knuck1e longitudinally of said coupler under bufi and draft stresses to engage said faces 011 said.

knuckle with those on said ears without imposing shearing stresses on said pin, means for rotating said knuckle t0 open position and engageable therewith rearwardly of said pin, said knuckle being movable laterally with respect 150 said coup1er in a direction inboardly of said ears until said knuckle engages said pin and said. pin engages said ears under the action cf said means, said. buffing faces beim; terminated adjacent the outboard side of said ears, the outboard sides of said. ears being formed with depressions extending from said. buffing faces thereon to the junchure of said ears With said head whereby the bufiing faces on the knuckle are in spaced relation to the outboard sides of said ears during movement of the knuckle 120 its open position.

4. In combination With a coupler head, 01" a knuckle rotatable with respect 1:0 the head and shiftable laterally and longitudinally thereof, mating bearing surfaces on said head and said knuckle forward and rearward of the axis of rotation cf said knuck1e and adapted be positioned in concentric relation'ship and aligned longitudinally 0f said head in the closed position 01 said. knuckle, means for rotating said knuckle to open position including a thrower engageable with the knuckle rearward 0f said axis, said thrower initially shifting said knuckle transversely of the coupler head, whereby said surfaces 011 the knuckle are shifted to a posiicm eccentric With respect to the surfaces 011 said head, said surfaces on said head forward of said axis merging with faces on said head around whicn the surfaces 0n the knuck1e forward of said axis a1e adapsed 120 pass during rotation of said knuckle from closed to open position, said faces being disposed closer to the axis of rotation of said knuck1e than said last-mentioned surfaces whereby the knuckle is free 110 move 110 its open position with=- out frictionally engaging said faces.

5. In a railway coupler, a coupler head com prising spaced lugs With bosses thereon, a knuckle between said bosses, a pin extending loosely through aligned openings in said lugs, bosses, and knuckle, shoulders on said knuck1e loosely partially surrounding said bosses and having faces engageable with complementary concentric faces on said nasses during bufimg and pulling acaion in the c1osed position of said knuckle, the portions of said bosses not surrounded by said shoulders in the close dposition cf said knuckle and adapted t0 be passed by said shoulders during opening of the knuckle having external surfacas offset from their adjacent concentric faces nward the axis of rotation of said knuckle Whereby ehe knuckle is free move to its open position Without contacting said surfaces.

6. A coupler heac1 comprising spaced portions aligned substantially vertically and provided with generally vertical aligned openings therethrough,

xternal convex surfaces on the forvvard sides of the portions defined from the central axis of said openings, each portion comprising an externa1 face on its outboard side contiguous to said surfaces and defined from said axis and of lesser radius than said surfaces.

7. A coupler head comprising spaced vertically aligned top and bottom ears, a boss on the bottom side of said top ear, a boss on the top side of said bottom ear, and convex, generally vertical draft; and bufiing surfaces on the forward and rear sides of each boss, respectively, said bosses having their outboard sides offset inwardly of the projection of the buffing surfaces on sa.id forward sides.

FRANK H. KAYLER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1107602 Gallagher Aug. 18, 1914 2007,451 Kinne Ju1y 9 1935 

